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The pregnancy rate in America is plummeting

The US Fertility rate has dropped to the lowest it’s ever been according to new federal data.

Posted:Aug 29 2016 03:55PM EDT

Updated:Aug 29 2016 03:55PM EDT

The pregnancy rate in America is plummeting

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The pregnancy rate in America is plummeting

The U.S. Fertility Rate has dropped to the lowest it's ever been according to new federal data. Four decades ago, an American woman typically delivered her first baby at age 21. By 2000, she was 24.9, and today she is 26.3.

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LOS ANGELES, CA - The U.S. Fertility Rate has dropped to the lowest it’s ever been according to new federal data. Four decades ago, an American woman typically delivered her first baby at age 21. By 2000, she was 24.9, and today she is 26.3.

A few reasons are obvious. Birth control became widely available, more women have finished school and started careers before starting a family, and fewer feel like they have to start a family at all.

Research is also showing that many women who want a baby choose not to try for one out of fear that they can’t afford to have children.

Forty percent of women between the ages of 40 to 55 say they have fewer children than they’d like.

Child-care costs across the country are soaring and the U.S. doesn’t guarantee a single day of paid maternity or paternity leave for workers.

So will this policy change in the future? Donald Trump recently proposed tax free childcare, while Hillary Clinton said that the government should cover up to 12 weeks of paid family leave.